Local Teachers Pack Lakeside Mall for Grade-In Event

The Lakeside Mall Food Court was packed Sunday, but rather than the usual assortment of teens enjoying Sbarro and A&W, the majority of patrons were teachers making lesson plans and grading homework.

The “grade-in” at Lakeside in Sterling Heights was one of several scheduled at various malls throughout May in an effort to raise community awareness of the work teachers do, even after the school day has ended. 

“We’re here because we want everyone to know that we’re dedicated and devoted to the children in the community, that we work hours far exceeding the regular school day,” said Paula Denyes, a counselor at in Rochester Hills.

“The school day doesn’t end when the bell goes off,” added Diane Kosuda, an eighth-grade science teacher at Van Hoosen.

Approximately 90 teachers from the Chippewa Valley, Utica, L’Anse Creuse, Rochester, Almont and Richmond districts, to name a few, donned red shirts and settled in at the food court to do their Sunday work.

“There seems to be some misconception by some that teaching is a part-time profession that only runs Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.,” said Doug Hill of Macomb Township, president of the Rochester Education Association. “We asked teachers to come here to do the work they would normally do at home.”

Conscious of the educational cuts pending in the Legislature, Hill said local educational associations organized the Lakeside grade-in and others to build awareness in the community of how such cuts will affect not only teachers and students, but the community as a whole.

“The proposed cuts would affect the salaries of teachers, and teachers are part of the economic wheel,” Hill said. “Teachers are part of your community. If we take more salary cuts or have to pay more into our health care, we will have less discretionary spending, and that will affect places like this (for example, shopping centers).”

But the effect on teachers is only one part of what Hill sees as a much larger educational issue.

“First and foremost, the cuts will affect kids,” he said. “Teachers' working conditions are students' learning conditions. I have a problem with the government saying a student will be worth $400 less next year. We understand shared sacrifice, but education is feeling the brunt of (these cuts), and it could be detrimental to the Michigan economy.”

Hill said 36 Rochester teachers attended the grade-in.

A group of teachers was also at the grade-in. They, like their Rochester counterparts, stressed their belief that teaching is not a part-time profession.

“We wanted the public to know what we do and how much work we actually take home,” said Deb Wojie, a teacher consultant at Iroquois. “People don’t know all we do outside of teaching. When we see a child without a winter coat, we kick in money to buy a coat. We raise money for different organizations and families in the school who need help.”

Wojie said she fears that proposed cuts will prevent teachers from helping students and community members in need in the way they currently do.

“It will impact those things,” she said. “We won’t be able to help out as much.”

Additional grade-ins will be held Sundays throughout May at shopping centers in southeast Michigan.